Tangle
by Stephlite
Summary: Jaded by the past, Bella is determined to never let anyone make her feel like a fool again.  But will a certain study buddy, Jake, melt the ice around her heart? Or will Edward be able to come back and mend the heart he had broken?
1. Intro

Just wanted to let people know I will be posting a new story called Tangle.

Tangle is a new story I am writing and I am nearly finished with. It is a J/B pairing as of right now, but that might change as I write it. There are only a few chapters left to write but they are the pivotal parts of where Bella has to decide between the two. It is AH/AU Semi non-cannon. Summary goes a little something like this.

Bella goes to Dartmouth and is a total player. Having her heart broken (Thanks Edward!) when she was a sophomore, she became jaded and angry and took it out on many unsuspecting guys along the way. She runs at the first sign of feelings. She's got her friends and there's Jake, the only guy in the school who doesn't want to get in her pants. When she finally starts to get over the hurt of Edwards heartbreak, he comes back to the school and wants to make amends. Bella decides some revenge is in order but is revenge really that sweet? She gets caught between old and new feelings. Who will finally get inside her heart? Edward who does a magnificent job of mending the heart he broke? Or Jake, the one guy she never has had to be scared around?

Chapter 1 will be posted by the end of the week.


	2. Chapter 1

**AN: OK here it is, I want to give much love to TheUnderStudy for all her love and devotion. A shout out to PTB for helping me with the first couple of chapters. **

**If you're looking for something like Justice For All, this won't be it. I had to get away from the sadness and write something less tragic. I will probably write another thriller/drama type story again one day. For now I hope you will enjoy the lighter side. This is almost complete. I have about 3 chapters to go. The entire story is Bella POV... Ok, here goes nothing!**

**The characters own me. I do not own them.**

Tyler slid his hand up my thigh like a pro. His hot breath teased my neck. I turned my face away from him, rolled my eyes, and sighed in boredom. He mistook it for pleasure. I allowed my hands to travel across his chest and enjoy the firm definition of it. He pressed his erection into my hip and groaned. His other hand found my face and turned my head so he could thrust his tongue inside of my mouth. I looked up into his hazel eyes and pulled back. Uncertainty flashed across his handsome features.

"I think I need some air," I whispered into his ear. He pulled back slightly, looking concerned.

"Everything all right?"

I smiled sweetly at him. "Yes, Ty. It's just that it has only been two days, and I feel like this is going so fast," I lied. If I had thought he was going to be worth it, we'd have been in my room sweaty and naked by now. He just didn't do it for me.

"Okay," he said, sitting upright.

His brow furrowed. I took a moment to look at his gorgeous face. His dirty blond hair and tan, muscular body was amazing enough. His boyish good looks had captivated many of the girls at Dartmouth. Even still, I felt nothing. Something about him irritated me. He pulled his shirt back on over his head. I reached for his hand, and he looked at me.

"I think we should go slow," I said quietly and looked up at him through my eyelashes.

He smiled at me and nodded. "Fo sho…I don't want to mess this up either, Bella. I mean, I want to go at your pace. I'm not about to do something stupid to mess it up."

My nerves twitched. That was what was irritating me. He managed to find a way to say "fo sho" in every conversation, multiple times.

"Thank you, Ty. I knew you'd understand," I cooed. He started to turn on the television, and I sat up quickly. I really didn't feel like hanging out in my room, and I didn't want him to get too comfortable.

"Do you want to go to the mall?" I asked quickly, my eyes resting on his hand holding the remote.

He looked over at me, contemplating it for a second, and smiled. "Fo sho. Let's go!" he said, standing up and reaching for the keys to his Porsche.

I gritted my teeth at the response but managed to smile up at him. The shopping took longer than I liked, but when he surprised me with a sweet little silver charm bracelet, I couldn't really complain. I had never owned anything from Tiffany's and was shocked at how much money he had spent on it. I looked at the glimmering bracelet. I remembered wanting a charm bracelet so badly as a kid. I almost gave it back, but the little kid in me held onto it.

When we were done at the mall Tyler dropped me off at the dorm. I walked happily inside the apartment. My roommate, Angela, smiled at me suspiciously.

"How's Brad? Or David? Or Tom? What's the flavor-of-the-week's name again?" she asked sarcastically.

"That would be Tyler," I responded casually.

"Oh right," she said as she poked her head into the refrigerator. "How is Tyler?"

"Oh. He's all right I guess," I said and put the famous blue bag on the counter.

Angela grabbed a slice of leftover pizza and closed the refrigerator door. She did a double take at the bag_._

"Don't tell me…" she said with disbelief.

I laughed and nodded. She threw the pizza on a plate and put it in the microwave. "What did he get you?" she asked.

"It's just a charm bracelet, but I really like it," I said with a laugh. I pulled it out and showed it to her.

"Very nice. Very expensive and nice," she stated and gave me a look.

"What?" I asked, feigning innocence.

Angela just shook her head. The microwave dinged and she pulled out her pizza.

"I really need a healthy dose of whatever mojo you are working with," she said with admiration. "How do you do it?" she inquired.

I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't know, honestly. If you figure it out, let me know,"

She took a large bite of her pizza, rolling her eyes while I put the bracelet back. "Movie tonight?" she suggested.

I thought it over for a second and then declined. I was really tired and had an early morning class. We said goodnight, and I grabbed my bag and put it up on the shelf inside my closet. I smiled at the bag and tried hard not to think about the kind of thank you Tyler would be expecting for getting me such a gift.

The next three days were spent dodging Tyler's advances and trying ever so patiently to endure his obnoxious overuse of the phrase "Fo sho." I mean, there was only so much a girl could take.

Right?

So I dumped him.

Don't get me wrong; he is hot, occasionally funny, and sometimes a little charming. He was great. Just not for me. Besides, I made myself a promise not to risk getting hurt ever again. Once was enough.

"Earth to Bella…" I heard Rosalie say, which snapped me from my train of thought.

"Huh?" I said lamely, looking up at her and Jess.

"I was just wondering where Ty is. For the last week or so, he has been your lap dog. We figured you would be testing each other's gag reflexes by now," Jess snickered.

"I broke it off," I said nonchalantly.

Rose and Jess exchanged looks and both rolled their eyes.

"What?" I asked, feeling defensive.

"He buys you Tiffany's, and you dump him three days later?" Rose stated in disbelief.

I groaned. "Well, I offered to give it back. He didn't want it."

Rose flipped her blond hair back and gave me the stink eye. Jess just glared at me and started biting her thumbnail.

I grabbed a cream cheese wonton from the carry-out box on the coffee table and bit into it. I loved to eat food I didn't have to cook.

The only sound over the next several moments was of me crunching down on my dinner. I kept glancing at Rose and Jess. Rose shifted around with a slight snarl on her face, and Jess seemed bored.

"What?" I growled, looking at Rose.

"Nothing," she snapped. I wondered why she took my break-ups so personally.

Just then, Angela came in wearing a really cute mini dress. I blew out a low whistle. She smiled and gave a quick curtsey. Rose and Jess both complimented her as she sat down next to me. She grabbed the lo mein and started munching away on it. After I had my fill of Chinese take-out, I got up and told them all I was going to throw on a change of clothes so we could head over to Mike Newton's party.

I walked into my bedroom and opened my closet, surveying all my possible choices. I wasn't a girl who had grown up with a lot. Compared to my friends' immense closets, mine was downright desolate. My father had to pinch and save every last dime just so I could get into Dartmouth. My wardrobe did not have as many designer labels as theirs, but I could hold my own without designer labels. In fact, I had made half of the clothes hanging in my closet. I reached in and pulled out a pair of black pants. I wore my purple bra underneath a shredded white tee and grabbed a pair of flip flops. Just as I slipped them on, my cell rang.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Hey Bella, It's Jake." I heard the friendly, yet oh-so-sexy voice say on the other end.

"Why hello there Mr. Black," I said playfully. I heard a slight laugh.

"Hello there, Ms. Swan," he played back. He made my insides gooey. I didn't like it.

"What's up?" I asked, ignoring the goo.

"I was going to ask if you had yesterday's notes from class."

Right. He had not been there the previous day, which made my elective English class nearly unbearable.

"Where were you?" I asked abruptly.

"Jeez, I had an interview Mom," he joked.

I cringed a little. "Ehh, yeah. It's just that class sucks without someone else there making fun of Professor Tarbor. An interview huh? Where?"

"Well, I'm glad to be of use in your life somehow," he teased. "The interview is just for an environmental field specialist. It's not even entry level, so I passed on it. Anyway, do you have the notes?"

"Yeah, I have them, but it's going to cost you," I stated playfully.

"Uh oh. What kind of fee would that be?" he asked, sounding suspicious.

"I need someone to escort me and my girls to Mike Newton's party tonight," I answered quickly. I thought that saying it fast would make it less unappealing to him. Wrong.

Jake groaned unhappily.

"Please, please, please," I pleaded.

"I hate those parties, Bella. Hate. Them," he stated. "They are such cock-fests."

"I know, Jake. I wouldn't ask if it weren't for the fact that I suffered a fairly unexpected breakup today and need someone strong and sexy to protect me from the hounds." I paused and heard him scoff on the other end. "You and I can find a quiet little corner there, and we can go over the notes together," I offered, hoping it would be enticing enough for him to go for it. Thinking of being next to Jake in any kind of corner was a huge turn-on for me. I stopped to wonder how much I would like him if he actually had any interest in me at all…

"Fine. But just so I am aware, _you_ are the one who ended it right? I'm not stupid. You didn't suffer from anything but a few hickeys, courtesy of Tyler Crowley," he quipped.

"Yes, it was me, but he was insufferable Jake," I said defensively.

"Uh huh, I have heard that before. What was that other guy's name? Allen? Adam?"

"It was Alex. Okay I know. I have a problem. I'll fix it at some point," I blurted out hastily and decided to turn the direction of the conversation to something more urgent. "I'm ready now, so do you want to meet outside in, let's say…twenty minutes?"

"Yeah, I'll see you outside," he grumbled, his tone much less enthusiastic than mine.

I was happy. Jake was my safety net. My go-to guy. Why? Because he didn't like me. He had zero interest in me outside of my superb note-taking skills. We scheduled a few classes together just because studying was so much easier, and well, more fun with each other. It was a challenge finding classes we could take together, since our majors were totally different. He was an Earth Studies major. Or wait, was it Environmental something or other? Anyway, I was in Art Studio and Design. Still, we made it work, and hey, far be it from me to want out of having a hot study-buddy.

I glanced in the mirror and decided to perk up my eyelashes and dab some gloss on my lips. Once I finished, I skipped out to the living room and told the girls that Jake was meeting us downstairs while I grabbed the bag with the day's notes in it.

I saw Jess's eyes light up. "Jacob Black?" she asked.

I eyed her cautiously. "Yes. The very one., I said and saw her raise her eyebrows. "My friend, Jake. _My_ friend, Jake. Don't even go there," I said as a warning, pointing a finger at her.

"Bella, you cannot have everyone to yourself. You go through them so quick, there won't be anyone left that is acceptably dateable!" Jess whined.

"I just don't want you ruining the dynamic. Date any one else that you want. Well, except for He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named, but being that _he_ living somewhere far away, the chances of that are nil. So go ahead, take your pick…" I said, brushing my hair back with my fingers and heading toward the front door.

"Really? What about Ben?" Jessica inquired.

"Ben. He's great. Give him a hummer, and he's in _love_. Go for it." I laughed with a shrug.

Jessica snickered. "You aren't talking about the vehicle are you?"

"Nope. Not even close. Actually, if I had to describe his dick in vehicle terms…" I paused for effect. "Volkswagen Beetle comes to mind," I said with a wink as we approached the exit of the building toward the courtyard outside.

The girls rolled with laughter. I pushed the doors open and looked around for Jake. I saw him sitting on a bench talking to some semi-attractive brunette. Okay, so she was really pretty. But the catty, selfish part of me didn't want to admit it. I walked behind Jake and tapped his shoulder, glancing at the girl with a quick −albeit snotty− smile.

He stood up and threw his arm around my shoulder. He looked back at the girl and said, "See ya later, Leah."

"Have fun, Jake," she said, and my girl-dar went off. She said it as though something was being implied. I looked up at his face and saw him suppress a smile. Hmm, it was something I would have to figure out later.

The party was crowded and smelled of beer and skanks; you know, the norm. I watched as Jess and Rose stood to the side, talking shit about the other girls at the party. I made good on my word to Jake, and we found a place in a quiet room, and I handed him my notes. After we got through studying, he stood up, and I followed suit. I glanced out the door and watched as Tyler walked in with a blonde girl. I smiled and sighed with relief. Good. He was going with the jealousy route. That was cool with me. It's the whiney "Talk to me. Come on, talk to me" kind of thing that I couldn't stand. I looked over my shoulder at Jake, who looked the epitome of sex-on-a-stick. Inwardly, I purred. I shook the thought from my mind. _Study __buddy __and __possibly __gay?_I pondered.

"Looks like I'm going to be safe for now," I said, looking back out the door. Jake walked up behind me, and his body heat warmed my back. I felt tingly all over.

"Oh yeah, you're safe. It's the jealousy routine. You're golden, at least for tonight," he said. I nodded happily and felt the need to press my back into his warm chest but resisted_._I did not want to make a fool out of myself. That would never happen again.

_Freshman year. _

_Lusty green eyes, full red lips. The crazy, uncontrollable copper waves. He had sat next to me in American History. He leaned over and whispered to me. "I'm going to cheat off you." _

_I smiled, "Oh, you want to fail this class that bad, eh?" We laughed, and it clicked; our connection was set._

_He had flirted with me for months without advancing in any way. He had finally asked me out on our first official date as we started sophomore year. I had been in the library studying for a test when he pulled a chair right up next to me. I vibrated at the nearness of his body. It was electric. _

_He whispered right into my ear, "Bella, have dinner with me."_

_I blushed. _

_He moved the hair from my neck and whispered again, "Please." His nose brushed my skin, sending shivers all over. _

_I turned to face him, and our eyes locked. I nodded. I was too afraid I'd stutter or say something stupid if I had actually used my voice. _

_He stood up and smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow night at seven."_

_He had said it so loudly that everyone in the room turned to stare. I almost died from the attention. I was pretty sure every inch of my body had turned red at that point, and I just said yes quietly and stared back down at my book. I got so flustered from what had happened that I couldn't finish studying. It had been pretty lucky that I passed the test the next day. _

__Word had spread quickly around campus about our impending date, the jealous girls whispered as I passed by. I couldn't help but smile whenever one of them would give me a dirty look. I was going on a date with Edward Cullen, the best baseball player Dartmouth had ever seen− the guy all the girls wanted. I was on cloud nine. How different I was back then…_  
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I shook the memory from my head and came back to reality. I leaned forward to give myself some space from Jake, and I felt his arm push the door wider for us to move out. I was relieved. The best thing about Jake was how obvious it was that he wasn't into me, at least not in that way. There I was in a room alone with him and he didn't so much as hint at anything. That had to be the only reason I felt that way when I was around him. It's the "forbidden fruit" or "wanting what you can't have" type thing. That was all it was. I walked out into the living room where the majority of people were being loud and obnoxious. I turned to Jake, who was still behind me, and asked if he was going to stick around.

"Nah, I'm going to head back to my dorm, but if you need me for anything, just call," he said with a half smile.

I gave him a half-hearted hug goodbye. As I pulled back, our eyes locked, and he held the gaze a second longer than what I deemed appropriate. I needed him to go, like _immediately_.

As though he read my mind, he waved goodbye and exited the room. I found my way over to Rose and Angela. I saw Jess in the kitchen talking to Ben and nearly died laughing. Rose and Angela found it just as hilarious.

Once we recovered, I decided to grab a drink, and Rose and Angela followed suit. I looked around the cooler and found a Bud Light− my beer of choice. Not that I was big on beer. God knows I wasn't, but it was a college party. We couldn't exactly afford Patron Silver every single weekend.

We started to walk out toward the back door when I saw Rose punch Jess lightly on the shoulder and say, "Slug bug!"

I choked on my beer from the unexpected laughter and felt it sting in my nose, making my eyes slightly water. Jessica looked mortified, but Angela and I thought it was the best line of the night. After we stopped laughing, the conversation went back to the one thing we always talk about− guys.

Angela started talking about her ex-boyfriend Eric, who was on a mission in South Africa. I couldn't understand how she managed to stay all hung up on him. I mean, Angela was every bit as pretty as any of us, and guys liked her a lot too, but she was just one of those good-hearted people who didn't play the silly games the rest of us did.

The way I used to be.

I swallowed down a weird knot that had formed in my throat. I stared down at the top of the bottle, blinking away the sudden angst I felt. I flashed back to those green eyes, his lips, the heartache… Ugh, it must be PMS. That was the only reason something would get to me like that. As though a guardian angel was looking over me, I felt Rose tug at the bottom of my shirt. When I looked up, I saw a pair of very different, but equally as sexy, green eyes. I leaned forward and bit my bottom lip as I looked up at Emmett McCarty and his stunning dimpled grin. He was a highly revered football player and popular ladies man.

"Want to dance?" he asked and slid his −holy shit− muscular arm around my waist.

_Edward who?_


	3. Chapter 2

**AN: Sorry it has taken so long to update. It is unforgivable. School kicked my butt and I am having beta issues. If you wanna help out on that front I'd be very appreciative... Reviews = love... Without further ado...**

**Chapter 2**

Okay, let me get one thing straight here; I hated jocks. I truly did, but there was no way I was going to pass up Emmett McCarty. No matter how pissy Rose got with me. And yes, okay, I knew she had her eye on him. He never gave her a second glance though, and hell, she knows me. Was this little love affair going to last? Hell no. I can't help it if this demigod came on to me first.

I have to admit though, it had been an exhausting three weeks. The man had a sex drive that would tire out even the most experienced porn star. I mean, in between classes, before parties, after parties, before the movies, during the movies, after the movies. It. Never. Ended.

Luckily for me, he was really good at it. I mean really, _really_ good at it. This was lucky for him too, because he had almost nothing besides the sexual to offer me. And I was okay with that, as long as it stayed sexual and he didn't try any funny "emo" shit on me.

As for Rose, she hardly spoke to me. I felt bad, sort of. It's not like she was the world's best friend to me either. I mean, I never forgot the crap she had said about me to Jessica when she thought I wasn't listening.

It was around four months ago. I had been using the public restroom in the dormitory when I heard Jess and Rose walk in. Jess was saying something about her class with Mike Newton when Rose interrupted her saying that she didn't get how I had guys eating out of my hand, when most of the time I didn't even put out. She also said that she was a lot prettier than me and had more to offer a guy than I did. She corrected herself quickly realizing how conceited she sounded and started to cover up by saying that they were both hotter than me and then repeated that she didn't know why guys liked me so much. She had said it made her resent me and blah-blah-blah. I sort of scratched her out of my "good friends" book after that. She was always moody when we hung out, and hell, I don't know what it is that guys see in me either, but to come right out and say stuff like that about someone who is supposed to be your friend is just messed up. So since then, I started to look at her differently. I mean, she was still a friend, but definitely not a good one.

I put my strappy black sandals on and glanced at myself in the mirror. I chose to wear a pair of tight fitting dark blue skinny jeans and a black off the shoulder blouse. It made my boobs look outstanding; especially since I wasn't wearing a bra. I brushed my long brown hair and checked my make up one last time before heading out.

Emmett asked me to go to his place that night since he had practice all day the next day. He played football for Big Green. He is a great wide receiver and there were mumblings about him getting picked up by the Packers. I started to walk out the door when my cell rang. It was Jake.

"Ollo," I answered trying to sound like Megamind.

"Uh, its 'hello' sir," he replied.

"Oh, _hello_, like that?" I mimicked.

"Uh huh," he responded and then we both laughed at our equal lameness.

"Whatcha up to?" he asked casually.

"Heading over to Emmett's," I answered with a sigh.

"Nice. So you two are getting pretty serious, eh?" he stated.

I thought about it for a second. "It's been three weeks, so, I guess that is serious for me." I laughed.

"Sure is. I mean pretty soon he is going to want you to be his girlfriend, after a while you can get engaged, and then you two can move over to Wisconsin and you can be a proud cheese head wife." He laughed. I didn't find it funny. Actually, it made me feel all gross.

"Ugh," I said and wrinkled my nose. "First of all, I'm never going to be a cheese head. Have you seen those gawd awful contraptions they put on their heads? It's…" I shuddered and made a shivering sound while Jake laughed it up.

"Anyway, what's up dude?" I asked changing subjects.

"Oh, I need some special advice from the expert of 'love on the run'."

"Mm hmm, you can't afford me," I joked.

"Oh come on, I'll take the notes in tomorrows class." He bribed.

I contemplated his offer. "Deal, ask away." I confirmed.

"Okay, there's this girl. She is totally hot for me, and I asked her out thinking maybe her personality would grow on me, and it did. Like mold. Gross, stinky mold that you want to get rid of forever, but she_is_ nice so I don't know how to handle it" he said flatly.

I laughed and thought it over. "Oh, is it Jane? The girl you told me about the other day?" I asked.

"Yep, that's the one," he confirmed.

"Hmm," I thought out loud "Band-Aid."

"What's Band-Aid?" he asked

"Tell her quick. Don't dwell on it but be nice about it. The hurt won't last long and she will heal nicely." I advised. It was the best I had and I was walking up to Emmett's door so I needed to go.

"Band-Aid, got it," he replied.

"Okay, let me know how it went." I said. We said our good byes and got off the phone, then I headed into Emmett's dorm. I took a few steps in and had suddenly felt out of place. I backed up and looked at the number on the door to make sure I had the right room. 2034. It was. It was clean, which was unusual, and the lights were dim. I walked in a little further and called out, "Emmett?"

The door closed behind me and I got nervous. Why did I suddenly feel like I was in a horror movie? I glanced around and finally saw Emmett. He was dressed in a sexy button down and jeans. He lit a few candles and I realized I smelled something really good, Italian? Baffled as I was, I walked over to him and nervously giggled. I mean, this was sweet and all, but why all this fanfare for sex? He bent down to place a delicious, soft kiss on my lips.

"Hey beautiful," he said while embracing me. My heart thudded, but not in a good way. I was really scared.

"Hey, uh, hi Em," I stuttered.

He took my hand and led me to the end of the dining room table and pulled out a chair. I sat down slowly, it felt intimate. I started to feel sick. I felt my heart beats start to quicken.

"What are you doing?" I asked, not in the nicest tone.

"I wanted to do something special for you," he answered and gave me a sweet dimpled smile.

I nodded my head and smiled the best smile I could manage. He went into the kitchen and placed a plate in front of me that was filled with some kind of pasta thing, and there were breadsticks on the table. I tried hard to appreciate the gesture. He cooked. For me. He cooked for me. Italian. _Oh__god_.

_*Italian music playing in the background*_

"_Ah, Mr. Cullen, I see you have brought quite a beauty with you tonight, eh?" The host had greeted us as we approached. His Italian accent was thick and the smell of the food made me ravenous. I hadn't eaten a thing the whole day, my nerves had been too frazzled. I couldn't believe that Edward Cullen was taking me out to dinner. The event had been so built up. He had dated two or three girls in the months previous to this, meanwhile, flirting with me like crazy, but not making any moves. I didn't understand why he had waited so long to ask me out. _

_The host sat us at a special reserved table. Our conversation was awkward at first. My nerves had hardly allowed me the freedom to speak coherently. I had flirted with him before, but it felt different being on an actual date and not in some casual atmosphere. _

_I looked at him from across the table. The candles flickered and his eyes were so intense staring back into mine. I had felt so enamored by him. The food we ate was amazing, the wine flowed, and I felt myself relaxing more and more._

_I had found out that he was at Dartmouth on a baseball scholarship. He found out that my college was already paid for courtesy of my parents and their stock portfolio. It had covered the majority, but they still had to shell out some of their savings. He told me that despite his finesse on the field he was actually majoring in Mathematics. I teased him a little. I asked if he was on the Mathletes in high school. He turned red which answered my question for me. He said his parents pushed the baseball thing because he had a natural talent for it. He really just wanted to teach and help people understand it. He called it a universal language and he spoke about what he wanted to do when he graduated with such passion, and I saw a different side of him. He wasn't Edward Cullen star athlete and playboy; he was Edward Cullen the human. I think that was the moment I fell for him. _

_After dinner, I ordered a tiramisu for dessert. He watched me take a couple bites and slid over to my side of the booth and asked for a bite. I brought the spoon to his mouth and he pushed it back toward mine._

_I took the bite and he covered my lips with his. I dropped the spoon and reached up to cup his face in my hands. His lips were so soft and warm that I melted into him and as we pulled back he had looked as dazed as I felt. My head was spinning and I couldn't tell if it was from the wine or from me simply being near him._

"_That was the best dessert I have ever had," he said softly and leaned his forehead against mine. We sat that way for a minute just being close and staring into each others eyes. It had been my first real date and it was one that I thought I would remember fondly for the rest of my life. It's funny how drastically things can change._

I felt the need to run. I wanted out of Emmett's place as fast as possible.

"Emmett. Why are you doing this?"

He sat down across from me and looked puzzled. "Doing what? Making a nice dinner for you? I just thought it would be nice. We don't do normal dating stuff. I just…"

I cut him off. "Look, what we do is fine with me. I don't need to be wined and dined." I felt panic crawl through my veins. I needed to get out of there.

"Bella, I was just trying…" he started, but I stopped him again.

"Stop trying Emmett okay?" I got up and walked out of his room. As soon as I got outside I took some deep breaths trying to calm down. I bent over and rested my hands on my knees. I felt as though I had run a mile when it had only been a few yards.

I started walking again and got half way across the courtyard when I heard Emmett calling my name. I quickened my pace toward my dorm, but who was I kidding? He was a fucking football player. I had no chance of escaping him.

"Bella, look at me." he grabbed my arm gently and turned me around.

I kept my eyes on the ground. I wondered why he was going through all this trouble. Whatever happened to having fun, just for the sake of having fun? Why were guys constantly trying to make me look stupid?

"Bella, hey, look at me. Are you okay?" Emmet asked sounding worried.

I looked up into his green eyes, took a deep breath and nodded. Damn, I wished he weren't so sexy. It would have made running away much easier.

"Emmett, I can't see you anymore. It's done. Whatever we were doing, it's done." I said quickly and started to walk away.

"Bella!" he yelled.

I kept walking.

"Bella, what did I do wrong?" he asked as he caught up to me.

"Nothing dude. You're awesome, but I think you might want something that I don't. Okay? I don't want to hurt you, so it's over." I said sharply. He looked so fucking sad. My stomach was in knots.

"It's better to end it now, before we both get hurt." I explained.

"Who said we had to get hurt Bella? Couldn't we just try to make it work?" he asked softly. I wanted to punch him. His eyes looked watery.

I fought my own tears. "It couldn't work. Not with me." I said flatly and started to turn.

"I wouldn't hurt you Bella," he argued.

"Ha!" I laughed sarcastically and I took a few more steps toward my building.

"You're a coward," he growled. I turned around and shrugged my shoulders at him.

"I am what I am," I replied, I turned around and pushed the doors open then walked inside.

I took the stairs up to my dorm room, skipping two at a time. The adrenaline was coursing through my veins and I felt tears burn my eyes. When I got inside I walked into my bedroom slamming the door behind me. I sat on the edge of my bed and tried hard to keep from crying. Why did I feel like crying? I had broken up with several people in the last couple years. None of them made me feel like this. Why was I being all soft? It had to be PMS. It was the only logical explanation.

I grabbed my pajamas and changed clothes then flicked my lights off. I heard Angela come to my door and knock.

"Is everything okay?" She asked.

"Yeah, everything's cool. Tired and headachy, that's all." I replied. I heard her go into her room and close the door. I pulled my blankets up over my head and curled up to go to sleep. I had just wanted that day to end.

The next week passed by pretty quickly. I immersed myself into my school work and didn't socialize much. Rose was still butt hurt over Emmett, even though it was over and he was free. However, she was being slightly nicer to me. She actually made an effort at pleasant conversation when they came over and hung out. She told me she was thinking about changing her major from Psychology to Sociology. Typical sophomores, they never know what they want. She said she felt she could reach more people there. I laughed −inwardly of course− when she first told me she was a psyche major. If anyone had issues, it was that girl, but who was I to judge?

I only had one year left in college. I couldn't wait until I could leave this place and then focus on what I wanted to do from there. I had several great ideas of where I wanted to go with my degree in Art Studio. There were a few really great museums in New York that I had my eye on. I thought about possibly having my own exhibit and studio for my own work. That would be my dream. It seemed a long way off though. I had to pay extra for an air tight storage unit that could keep my paintings from being damaged until then; or at least until I had my own place in the real world.

I got out of the shower and got dressed to go out to Shenanigans in Vermont. It was only a 15 minute drive. A bunch of people were going there for a pre season drink a thon. Where we ended up going after that is a whole other thing. I pulled out an open necked sweatshirt and threw on some figure fitting jeans. I wasn't in the mood to be all dolled up. I grabbed a ponytail holder and pulled my hair back. I dabbed some mascara and lip gloss on and then left.

When we arrived, the first person I spotted was Emmett. He would have been looking sexy as hell if it weren't for that sullen expression on his face. It was hard to see the side effect of letting someone get too close. I wondered if it had affected Edward when he…

I stopped that thought right in its tracks.

Rose and Jess walked up to the bar where there were a couple of guys I didn't recognize. I walked up behind Rose and watched as she stood there with the most compassionate expression on her face for Emmett.

"Dude, go console him," I told her. She looked at me with shock.

"What?" She gasped.

"Go, pick up the pieces. Go tell him what a piece of shit I am for doing that to him." I ordered.

"What? I mean, there's a girl code… Wouldn't it bother you? Even a little?" She asked but I could tell it wasn't going to take much to get her over there.

"No, it's not going to…" I scoffed with mock disgust, "Hello. Hi Rose, my name is Bella. Have we met?" I asked sarcastically and putting my hand out for a handshake. She smiled with uncertainty but I pushed her in his direction with the hand that had been held out.

"Go." I said with a nod in his direction. I wanted her to be happy. I also wanted to stop that disgusting, guilty feeling I had in my stomach. Ugh…

Jessica stood there looking at me in awe.

"What?" I asked looking at her skeptically.

"That was so cool of you, like, really cool." She answered. I shrugged.

"Everyone deserves happiness Jess." I said as I watched Rose make her way over to Emmett; ballsy woman that she is. Her blonde hair was exceptionally shiny that night. She looked great and I thought that she could be just the thing Emmett needed. She looked like a classic 50's pin up girl; sex and curves.

Jessica smiled sweetly at me. "You're right Bells, even you."

I gave her a blank stare. What the fuck was she talking about? I was happy.

"What the fuck are you talking about? I am happy." I said.

She laughed at me. "Right, I know 'UntouchaBella' is very happy. Mm hmm."

I laughed really hard. UntouchaBella. Where did she come up with that stuff? I looked around the room and scoped out the scene. The bartender brought us our shots and I downed mine like a champ. There weren't very many romantic possibilities here. I figured I could re-hookup with Marcus. He was always cool with me. I just hated his laugh. It sounded like a wounded hyena. I decided to go say hi so I sashayed my way over to him with Jess in tow and we chatted for a while. I found out that he recently obtained a girlfriend; a med student at that. I was impressed!

He introduced me to his less attractive friend James. I had seen him around a bit. He had blonde hair and blue eyes. He looked like a country boy. I wasn't sure I liked him at first but once they bought a few more shots for us, he was looking pretty good. A little while later, Jess was being pulled away by Bug, I mean, Ben. She looked over at me to make sure I was okay. I gave her the thumbs up and watched as she stumbled away with him. She couldn't say I didn't warn her.

I glanced drunkenly over at Rose and Emmett. She was sitting by his side and they were in some kind of intense conversation. I smiled and James tapped me on the shoulder.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"Oh nothin'," I slurred and looked over at him. He smiled. He had great teeth.

"You have great teeth." I complimented and stood up, sort of, it was more like I stumbled up. I was getting tired and being that I know first hand how awful it is to see someone who dumped you get with someone else, I decided to leave. I didn't want anything to distract Emmett from Rose.

James walked me outside and I called a cab. We stood mostly in silence out there, the night air was a bit chilly but I shoved his arm off me when he tried to warm me up. When the cab pulled up I looked over at James and raised an eyebrow at him. I walked over to the window and took a peek inside at Rose. She saw me through the glass, and thankfully, Emmett had his back turned. She gave me a huge smile and I smiled back and waved bye.

"Wanna split the cab fare?" I asked James as I walked to the cab. He smiled and nodded his head. We crawled into the cab together and headed back to my dorm.


End file.
